Colornote and Routines Part 3

Sorry this took a while to get posted.  After the GTC (Great Tablet Crash) of 2013 it has taken some time to get everything flowing again.

In part 1 I explained how I create Colornotes from a Word document on my Samsung Galaxy 7.7 tablet.  Notes can also be created from any sort of text file.  I have sent files to my son's tablet as a text file in an email and he has been able to save them as notes after a little editing.  In part 2 I showed you how I lay out my notes on the screens of my tablet for easy visibility.

In this part I will show you how I use them on a daily basis.  After the GTC I have subtly changed how I lay out the notes on my screens but I still use them in the same way.

Every morning I do my First Things list.  First, of course!  Usually as I sit and ponder if you know what I mean.  It doesn't take me much longer than 5 minutes to quickly change the routine notes, check the weather, check the calender and add any little jobs that I think of to my Next Action list for the week.

I then steadily work through my lists, marking things as done.  There is a big sense of satisifaction when a note is greyed out due to all its items being marked as completed.  Some times I have to mark things off because I realise that they just won't get done.  That is okay!  I just keep moving, prioritising as I go.

At the end of the day I sometimes take a screen shot or two to save in Evernote to have evidence of the good days.  But I usually just take the option of List, Uncheck all items, and I am ready to go again for the next day.

If I need to change the plans for the day I will put in an extra item like this,  "~~~Doctor's Appointment~~~" and cross off any items that will need to be dropped for the day so I can make the appointment.  At the end of the day I delete the special bit/s and uncheck all the other items again.

Big Tip:  Do not use the sort by status option for routine notes.  It will mess up the order you do things in and you will have to reshuffle it all again for the next use.  I do use the sort by status option on task lists so that the completed items drop to the bottom but then again I won't be reusing them and it keeps the top of the list uncluttered by complete items, leaving only the ones I still need to action.

I also have the week's cleaning laid out on one screen.  I try to work my way through the list by the day I usually do that room but sometimes I do things out of order.  I generally don't uncheck these lists until the next time they come up in my 4 weekly rotation.  That way I know what has been done recently and I can prioritise tasks that keep dropping off the list.

 

So there you go!  It all takes quite some time to set up but once I have it sorted it doesn't take much to tweak it for seasonal changes or a house move.  Or just the little day to day speed bumps in the path of the day.  :-)

Best wishes

Jen

 

Spring Cleaning Take 2 or is that 3?

The great thing about a blog or journal is being able to look back and see what has happened in the past and then knowing how to improve things.

Last year I tried to do my spring cleaning in early September after it had warmed up.  This year I am doing it earlier when it hasn't become fully spring yet, trying to avoid the heavy spring rains that the BOM is predicting for my area, and avoiding the warmth that makes all the grass very happy and me very miserable.

Yesterday I started pulling curtains down to wash them.  It is a little disheartening to clean only the inside of the windows and not have that joy of clean windows outside but it is still too cool to be washing the outside of the house just yet.

 Another job to do before it gets too warm is to weed the front garden beds.  I put down a nice thick layer of mulch but the weeds were persistent, giving me a front garden more full of weeds than flowers.  Nice job to do when the sun is shining on that part of the yard.  Wonder if I can get up early enough to do that this week?!

How is your spring cleaning  going?

Best wishes
Jen

Sorting out those horrible sinuses!

I vacuumed part of the house on Monday, a typically windy winter's day, and tipped out the canister of dust into the bin.  I would usually tip it into a plastic bag first (I collect an awful lot of plastic shopping bags, hanging head in shame) and then put the whole bag in the bin.

Well, I have learned that I need to not toss dusty dog hair and all those other bits of allergen nasties loose into a bin on a windy day.  I have had bad sinuses for 4 days now.  Others in my family have colds but I don't have the muscles aches or the sore throat before onset of other symptoms so I am pretty sure my mucous overload was due to allergies.

Some things I have worked out that have eased the sinus pressure and the headaches and grogginess.

1. Cold air to breathe as much as possible.  I need to be warmly rugged up but I breathe better outside and the best was when I was at the beach last night with the wind whipping up the surf.  I have even been sleeping with my bedroom window open on nights where the temperature has been dropping to 8 and 9 degrees C overnight so I can breathe and sleep.

2. Warm steamy showers as soon as I get up to clear sinuses.  It doesn't work if I only put my head over a steamy bowl.  And if I warm my hands and put them on my sinuses it really seems to relieve the pressure feeling.

3. Reducing exposure, which is quite weird because I am allergic to grass but I feel better outside.  Don't get that one. In future though I am going to wear a mask while dusting or emptying vacuum canisters and on days I know it will be bad for grass I will wear a mask to hang out washing.

4. Healthy diet to increase ability to cope with the overload.  I have noticed that the sugar hits I use to get myself through the tiredness actually increase the mucous in my throat.  I need to eat healthier.  Ironically yoghurt, a dairy product and a "mucous producer" is not causing me any issues.  Maybe I don't have dairy intolerances.  Loads of vegetables do help. 

5. Don't stop taking medication that works.  And I am adding on Fenugreek or Fennel tea every day as they are both good for mucous membranes.  Sinuses and the digestive tract.  There could be good bonuses for my bloaty tummy.

I am getting a much clearer head now.  I am able to analyse what happens instead of just sitting here feeling totally wiped out and depressed.  It is ironic how pushing myself to do housework when feeling bad has actually helped give me feedback on what works.  Gotta love how G-d plans these things!  lol

Well, housework to do, as always, so see you later.

Best wishes
Jen